Compare Yao and Biedrens...

I know, it sounds rediculous, but who thinks Biedrens will ever be as good as Yao is now or even when he was a rookie? All I have seen from him is dunks, blocks and great hands...

 

n=<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Warriorfansnc93:</div><div class="quote_post">I know, it sounds rediculous, but who thinks Biedrens will ever be as good as Yao is now or even when he was a rookie? All I have seen from him is dunks, blocks and great hands...</div>
He could be a bit better. I know it sounds nuts, but the kid is a beast on D already and is changing our opponenets shots. Also he hustles his ass of when he is playing. He goes for every loose ball avalible and even those out of his range. He has shown a low post game and is greating at getting the ball and holding onto it. Also he can gain some muscle and pounds and develop an even better low post game.

BDiddy also said he will be a top ten C very soon. Right now the best are (not in order)

Shaq
Big Z
Yao
Magloire (when healthy)
Ben Wallace
Amare Stoudamire
Eddy Curry
Foyle (yeah right)

If Biedrins does what Davis says Biedrins can do, we will be a very good team in the future.

 

From what Ive seen Beidrins is more of a hustle player then Yao. He seems to be more willing to do the dirty work and bring energy. Offensivley Yao is more polished and has more range, Yao is also a pretty good free throw shooter for a big man where AB needs serious work at the line. As for defense Yao obviously has the size advantage but AB seems more aggressive to block shots, kock balls away and make steals. IMO Yao is way to soft on defense, he should have more blocks but instead he tries to take charges too much. Physically Yao doesn't have the quickness of AB. I hope AB doesn't gain too much weight because his mobility and athleticism can be a nice advantage and we're lacking that in big men.
Both players got alot of potential but got alot of improving to do. I think Yao needs to be more aggressive on both ends of the court, I dont think Ive ever seen a mean streak in him like AB is supposed to have. I dont watch a whole lot of Houston games so maybe he has shown it but just about everytime Ive watched him he seems too timid for his size. AB needs to work on his offensive moves around the rim. He seems to have a pretty nice touch, he just needs to develope some go to moves and maybe develope a little more range although he should mainly stay in the paint where he comfortable. I like his hustle on defense and his attitude of "trying to block everything" but he's gotta learn how to avoid fouling so much which I dont think will be a problem when he gets more experience and learns the game a little more. I honestly believe AB has potential to be a better skilled player then Yao. His attitude and work ethic is un-replacable and is rare to find for big men. He played fearless at 18 years old so just think when he's in his mid 20's. As for right now I would probally take Yao over AB but in the long run Id take AB.

 

Aside from the obvious foreign element, these two players are very different. Yao has enormous pressures on him, while Biedrins right now is a happy-go-lucky kid with a sunny disposition. Yao's a traditional center, while Biedrins is still developing. Yao has good passing and shooting skills to go along with his inside game, while Biedrins is and probably will be more of an inside player likely only to get a good outside game later on. Yao barely dunks, while Biedrins is already a rim-rocker and high energy player. Very different styles of play and mentalities.

As far as the top centers, this is my opinion:

1. Shaq O'Neal
2. Yao Ming
3. Amare Stoudamire (F/C)
4. Ben Wallace (F/C)
5. Marcus Camby
6. Brad Miller
7. Zydrunas Ilgauskas
8. Jamaal Magloire
9. Samuel Dalembert
10. Erick Dampier

Honorable mention: Nenad Krstic, Primoz Brezec, Kelvin Cato, Mehmet Okur, Raef Lafrentz, Lorenzen Wright, P.J. Brown.

Can Biedrins meet those expectations? All he needs to do is provide about 10 points, 8 rebounds, and 1 or 2 blocks per game with otherwise smart defense. Will he do it anytime soon? Well, he's obviously going to improve, but I see another year before he makes a big impact.

 

The thing I saw early from Biedrins, which has been mentioned a lot already, was his hustle. And what impressed me more than his hustle was his work in the post. I saw some promising stuff from this guy, when he was getting some garbage time or something, and I think there were just some bench players in the game like Fisher or whatnot. And all I could see is the ball doing nothing on the perimeter, but in the post I glanced to see what Biedrins was doing. I saw Biedrins fighting and fighting in the post as he tried to gain position and seal his man. I was like wow. Someone who is going to play offense in the post and at least be a presense in the post on offense, by constantly trying to gain position on his opponent. And he was going to do this, no matter if he was getting tons of touches or not. I was like, this guy is going to be something when he is able to get some experience. The thing that really got me excited, was that this guy was supposed to be a better defensive player.

Also it's difficult to compare Yao and Biedrins. They are both successful and productive in different situations. If you told Biedrins to guard Yao for a whole game, I think Yao would probably succeed. If you wanted one to guard Shaq, then I think Yao would probably be a little better at that. But if you wanted someone to be aggressive and provide energy and such, then I think Biedrins would prosper more. I like Biedrins' aggression along with his great hands and touch, and if he can continue to build up skills then his game will continue to become much much better. And it could be scarey to watch this guy grow and develop, because he can become a pretty good player.

Man patik Andris. Andris ir labi...lol...visu labu...Ok i suck at Latvian. But anyway, that is probably all wrong. But I gotta learn since I will be there for a semester...heh, gotta buy a Andris jersey.

Oh yeah, I would also rank Ben Wallace a head of Yao Ming. It's close. But I Ben Wallace has a ring and a few defensive player of the year awards, I believe. But it's close. I think Ben Wallace is a little more productive, at least to his team, than Yao Ming is. Both are very good though.

 

Good post, clif25. I think rating centers is hard to do because each center means something different to their team. If we're mainly talking about rebounds, blocks, post defense I'd agree that Ben Wallace is probably one of the top 3. Amare is a scoring machine, but he doesn't play much defense, something a good center should specialize in kind of like a goalie in soccer. If Amare is considered a center, I'd have to put Tim Duncan in there and Jermaine O'neil in there somewhere because no way these guys are pure power forwards. They put in TD at power forward because he's well rounded enough to play it and he's oversized for the position. They put in Jermaine O'neil for the similar reason in that he's super athletic enough to play it, but he's always playing inside.

I don't know what Biedrins will become, but his potential is pretty huge and he's so young his development could be rapid if he's coached right and has the same good attitude and work ethic he's been carrying. He's very aggressive and tough too.

 

Biedrens is very quick for his size,hustles,has good hands and court sense. There is little to show he will develop a shooters touch. So far his FT and midrange J are not accurate. Some never become real good shooters,a few pick it up later,but if Andy plays a good overall game inside thats the main thing,and he's shown plenty of promise in that regard.

 

Biedrins is tough, Yao is not. Simple as that.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting upsidedownside7:</div><div class="quote_post">Biedrins is tough, Yao is not. Simple as that.</div>
I second that

 

Like Clif and Zhone mentioned, Biedrins' has different circumstances from Yao and has a different body type. If I had to choose between Yao and Biedrins from a managerial standpoint, believe it or not I'd go with Biedrins because I don't think Yao is worth the max he is sure to get.

I think because Yao is bigger and came into the league more polished, it's hard to gauge his upside and there's more expectations coming from him. He's shown flashes of being dominant, but he can't stay consistent for some reason (his all year schedule?). It must be very hard to be that big running the floor and not have offseasons to get better, recover and feel excited about playing again.

Biedrins' upside is pretty much on the level of Pietrus IMO. Both are fearless, very athletic for their size, and are balls of energy. They've shown some very good stuff despite being somewhat unpolished.

 

<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Clif25:</div><div class="quote_post">
Man patik Andris. Andris ir labi...lol...visu labu...Ok i suck at Latvian. But anyway, that is probably all wrong. But I gotta learn since I will be there for a semester...heh, gotta buy a Andris jersey.
</div>

It is not so terrably wrong, I got the point
Off the topic - I just would like to add that:
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2. This is the best club to go to, and where the grils are at.... Club Essential
3. You will miss all the freedom we have here back in USA.

On AB and Yao case.
Somehow I think it it be more realistic to compare AB with other centers and power forwads who began to play in NBA in recent years. I am looking forward to next season when he should randomize his offencife game, because that he was scoring now mostly out of the pick'n'rols and garbage points this season.

 

I watch yao a lot and it really doesnt make sense to compare these two guys. they have differant games, one is an aggresive guy who really can only be efective in the paint and yao has a longer shot and doesnt play with the same hustle. Biendrins is more like shaq than yao if anything.
He will do good in this league. unlike yao, he isnt critisized for everything so he has more time to become a great player.

 

Well it's no wonder guys like Dunleavy and Yao get ripped. They play unaggressive at times, that causes them to play soft on both ends, and then both tend to get down on themselves during the course of the game. These guys have the size, all around talent and potential to step up their game when the team needs them, and sometimes these guys aren't the type of players that do that. They get a little tentative.

 

ive never heard of biedrens.......i wonder why......

 

Jeez, kinda harsh Run BJM. People who say that they've never heard of Biedrins are voicing valid statements for the average NBA fan. I mean, I don't know the Rockets in and out, either, and if I was comparing some guy who I didn't know much about to one of the NBA's most popular players, I'd say so too. The topic talks about Yao, something he would know about. Sure it's not the most enlightening post in the world but he's free to say what he wants to as long as within the bounds of JBB guidelines. Anyway, my point is he didn't say much and I think you infer a bit too much from what he said, and you should relax and smile a little.